Andrew Garfield is on a roll with limited series. After locking down an Emmy nomination for his work in Under the Banner of Heaven, the actor will reportedly play British billionaire Richard Branson in a new six-part series about the rise of Virgin Airways. Deadpool 2 director David Leitch will helm the project with a script from Paddington 2‘s Jon Croker.
According to Deadline, the limited series is titled Hot Air and is currently locked in a “competitive situation with multiple major platforms.” (Read: Bidding war, baby.) Hot Air will reportedly adapt investigative journalist Martyn Gregory’s best-selling book, Dirty Tracks, which examined the secret war waged by British Airways when Branson’s burgeoning airline became a major competitor:
Branson launched Virgin Atlantic in 1984 with one leased airplane. By 1990, the company started to threaten British Airways’ dominance in the UK market after getting landing slots at London Heathrow Airport. In response, BA launched a “dirty tricks” campaign, with its staffers using passenger records and impersonating Virgin employees to try to gain inside information on the upstart competitor and persuade Virgin customers to switch to BA.
When Branson learned of British Airway’s actions, he filed a complaint with the European Commission, which prompted British Airways to retaliate by planting fake media stories about Virgin. Having enough of that, Branson sued, but the two parties were able to reach a settlement the night before the trial. In the end, British Airways apologized and covered the cost of legal fees and damages.
Sadly, neither party engaged in combat between two 747s, which we’re not saying the show should do, but we’re also not not saying that. (Andrew, you have all the cards here. Think it over.)
(Via Deadline)
